


Luxuries You Can't Afford

by tj_teejay



Category: 12 Monkeys (TV)
Genre: 12 Monkeys Theme Week, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-09
Updated: 2015-04-09
Packaged: 2018-03-20 22:22:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3667404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tj_teejay/pseuds/tj_teejay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He feels clumsy in moments like this. Come to think of it, he feels clumsy around Cassie quite a lot, especially in those more quiet, honest moments. 12 Monkeys fic written for Day 4 of the 12 Monkeys Theme Week 2015.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Luxuries You Can't Afford

**Author's Note:**

> **Title:** Luxuries You Can’t Afford  
>  **Author:** TeeJay  
>  **Fandom:** 12 Monkeys (Syfy)  
>  **Genre:** Gen (or Het, depending on where you draw the line)  
>  **Characters/Pairings:** Cassie/Cole  
>  **Rating:** PG-13  
>  **Summary:** He feels clumsy in moments like this. Come to think of it, he feels clumsy around Cassie quite a lot, especially in those more quiet, honest moments.  
>  **Author's Note:** 12 Monkeys fic written for Day 4 (Casserole) of the 12 Monkeys Theme Week 2015. Apologies that I surpassed the 1,000 word mark as set in the rules, but only by some 50 words, so I hope to get away with it. I imagine this to be set some time around episode 1x10.  
>  **Disclaimer:** None of this is mine except for my vivid imagination. Copyright to characters and situations belongs to Terry Matalas, Travis Fickett, Atlas Entertainment, Syfy Channel, and whoever else might wish to claim ownership. I'm just borrowing for a little escapism and a whole lot of fun.
> 
> +-+-+-+-+

For the life of him, he can’t figure out what she sees in him. James Cole—major screw-up, impulsive at the best, volatile at the worst of times, barely more than a scavenger. If only she knew the real him.

He often wonders what it would be like if she met him in 2043. Would she even dignify him with so much as a glance?

The sharp pain takes him back to the present, and he can’t help but wince. She gives him a sympathetic look, and he once more realizes how surreal it all is. The two of them here, on the settee in her parents’ otherwise deserted store.

She works away at the stab wound in his upper arm. Which isn’t deep, but serious enough to need stitches. Good thing she’s a medical doctor. She’s saved his ass more times than he can count, and he knows she’ll do it over and over again. And that’s what he can’t quite figure out.

He shifts his position, and she chides him. “Hold still, I’m almost done.”

He grunts, because he hates the fussing. He’s too antsy, even though he knows she doesn’t like it when he gets fidgety. She has an uncanny ability to ground him, to give in to those few, glorious moments where he allows himself to relax.

He watches guardedly as she cuts off the excess suture thread and applies a white dressing pad from her first aid kit to cover the wound. “There you go, good as new. Just take it easy for a few days, okay?”

“Yeah, fat chance,” he retorts.

“You hungry?”

He lets a small smile crack at his lips. She knows him too well. “Do you even have to ask?”

“Give me ten minutes, I’ll be right back.”

She returns a short while later with a paper bag that has a ‘Burger Boi’ logo on it. A sweet, delicious scent of fried food fills the air, and he can’t wait to take a hasty bite out of the double cheeseburger.

He can see her stealing a glance at him as she dips her country fries in barbecue sauce. Her mischievous smile prompts him to ask, “What?”

“Nothing. It’s just… I like this side of you.”

“Which one is that? The almost-starved-to-death one?”

“No, the little-boy-in-a-candy-store one.”

“Do you know how long it’s been that I’ve had anything this tasty?”

“Well, let me see… I’d say about two years, although that’s just by my calendar. By yours, I don’t even want to hazard a guess.”

“Yeah, that whole thing, it gets a little confusing.”

Her expression gets more serious. “So can we talk about the dizziness and the nosebleeds?”

He sighs, his appetite vanishing considerably. He wants to tell her no, but perhaps she has a right to know. “It’s the time travel. What do you want me to say?”

“Come on, Cole, I’m not stupid. It’s wreaking havoc on your body. How serious is it?”

“I’m not sure.”

“You must have some idea.”

“Yeah, look. It’s going to kill me, okay? Eventually. The more I jump, the worse it gets. As for how many jumps I have left, I don’t know. Maybe two, maybe twenty, who knows? Which is why it’s even more important that we don’t sit around, reminiscing about what ifs and could bes.”

“I’d say that it’s even more important you take a break and regain some energy. You can’t keep going at this rate. That’s going to kill you even faster.”

“And I’d say that’s a luxury I wish I could afford. You know how it works. I have no idea when I’m gonna be pulled back, or what will have happened in the meantime. It’s like making the rules up as we go.”

“I know,” she sighs, her voice low. “And it’s killing me that every time you splinter back, I don’t know what it’s gonna be like for you, or if I’m ever gonna see you again.”

He’s never considered that, never even thought about the fact that anyone from outside his own time could know him well enough, let alone like him enough to miss him. He’s at a loss for a response. He feels clumsy in moments like this. Come to think of it, he feels clumsy around Cassie quite a lot, especially in those more quiet, honest moments.

But it doesn’t matter, because she continues, “Which is such an irrational thing, because if I don’t see you again, it means that we were successful and that it worked, and that the world isn’t gonna end. I mean, why wouldn’t I want that? That’s what we’re doing, right? That’s the goal.”

He just looks at her. She’s adorable when she’s rambling. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen her this flustered. He doesn’t know where it’s coming from, but he wants to kiss her. She’s still talking about their mission, and he cuts her off mid-sentence when his hands reaches for the back of her neck, his lips meeting hers.

He can sense her surprise, her initial resistance, but it only lasts a split second; then she leans in, kisses him back.

His brain kicks into overdrive, and before he knows it, she pulls back, her eyes on his. There’s something bashful in them, and a hint of regret. “Cole, what are we doing?”

He smiles. “Kissing?”

“Yeah,” she says, her voice more vehement. “It’s... I’m not sure we should—“

“I know. It’s complicated. We probably shouldn’t. But, damn, Cassie, I’ve wanted to do it ever since I saw you in that dress at the party that night.”

She grins at him. “The one where you told me I looked clean?”

“Yeah. Not my greatest moment, I’ll admit.”

“Oh, you have a lot to learn.”

“Can I do it again?”

“What, kiss me? No. At least not right now.”

He draws his lips into a slight pout as she tells him, “Eat your cheeseburger. We have work to do. No more kissing.”

He gives her a mock salute. “Aye aye, Sergeant Railly.”

He doesn’t kiss her again that night, but, damn, he thinks about it every minute until he feels the prickle in his fingertips, until the tether pulls him back to the future. He vows to hold on to the memory for as long as he can.


End file.
